Lengthened Shadows
by Rebecky-mo
Summary: Not sure on the censor, so lemme know if it should go higher. Now that Julie-su knows about her identity, she decides to have a little 'family reunion', but she doesn't know what this will do to her body...and her mind... A prologue to "Thicker Than Blood"
1. Lengthened Shadows

For all those who read the Archie Sonic comics and saw SSS #11,  
'Girl Power', this story will seem familiar. This takes place after   
Julie-su's solo story 'Shadows' which I loved. (Figured out who my fave   
char is yet?) Anyhoo, this is a prologue to what I hope to be a very   
good Julie-su mini series. Someone's gotta do it, 'cause I doubt the   
comics are gonna get the chance...  
  
The chars mentioned in here belong to Sega or Archie.  
  
  
Lengthened Shadows ~By Rebecky-mo~  
  
My name is Julie-su.  
  
I am no one.  
  
  
  
At least, that's what I believed until a few weeks ago.   
  
Before then, I was merely known as Julie-su, or the traitor, or,  
  
as Vector calls me, the witch. Now, I am confused.  
  
  
  
Maybe I should start at the beginning, back when I met   
  
someone I'd never expected to see again, had I remembered that   
  
I'd ever met them before. I have had amnesia for almost seven   
  
years now, beginning at age nine. From what I have been told,   
  
this was due to a tragic accident during my training to become   
  
a soldier for the Dark Legion. I would have believed them, save   
  
one mistake in the story: combat training doesn't begin until   
  
age ten.  
  
  
From that moment on, I knew there was no one I could   
  
trust in this army. Each of them knew the truth, yet refused   
  
to give me my right: the right to know my identity.  
  
  
  
I didn't even know if Julie-su was my real name.  
  
  
  
After I left the Legion to join the currant guardian,   
  
Knuckles, and his own 'army' the Chaotix, I believed I could   
  
concentrate on what lay ahead of me, and forget about the desire  
  
to know the truth. Needless, to say, I was 100% wrong.  
  
  
  
That's what brought me back to the compound I first   
  
lived in when the Legion returned to the island. It was, in my   
  
opinion, the best place to begin my journey. As I walked around the  
  
fallen beams and broken doors, I remembered how this was what I once   
  
considered living; being ordered around and doing the work for a   
  
pompous, overbearing son of an egg layer, Kragok.   
  
  
  
The small bunks I shared with alot of the male soldiers   
  
were cramped and cold, with no pillows or blankets, cold,   
  
emotionless steel surrounding us. What none of the others knew   
  
was that during the mere six hours of sleep we got every night,   
  
Kragok used subliminal 'conditioning' to make ruthless soldiers   
  
out of us. I found this out as woke up one night, hearing the voice  
  
through unseen speakers ~the brave have no emotion. No love, no   
  
fear, no sadness.~ After that, I wore earplugs to bed, but much   
  
of the conditioning was already implanted in my mind; as if it  
  
weren't messed up enough..  
  
  
  
A noise from a supposedly empty hallway leading to Kragok's   
  
private quarters snapped me out of my reminiscing, and I reached for  
  
my blaster, cautious so that I wouldn't be seen...that's when I tripped  
  
that blasted alarm. DAMMIT!!! I ran hard to escape the security shield  
  
going down behind me, only to bust my shoulder against it. Knowing   
  
there was no turning back, I looked over to see an old man sitting at   
  
Old Metal Arms desk, and ordered him not to move and identify himself.  
  
  
  
It was obvious he had been a member of the legion; his left   
  
arm was completely cybernetic, one of his right dredlocks had been  
  
replaced by a a round metal disk, and he wore the Legions tradional  
  
grey cloak. His face was long and worn, with a beard that was roughly   
  
as long as his torso. He turned to look at me, and I was taken   
  
completely off-balance as his grey eyes burned with honest joy..and   
  
he spoke my name. This man knew me. Or so he said. As much as his   
  
currant position showed, he was covering up; but something told me   
  
I could trust him, as if I knew him as well. So, I replaced the   
  
blaster to my belt, and listened to what he had to say.   
  
  
  
He began to tell me of a descendant of Menniker, the first  
  
leader of the Legion against the guardians, whose name was Luger.  
  
Just like every echinda, he fell in love with a young woman named  
  
Merin-da, got married and had twins; a son named Kragok, and a   
  
daughter known as Lien-da. This last name rang a bell; it was   
  
Kommisar's true name before she reached power as Kragok's right   
  
hand.  
  
  
  
It was around the twins eighth birthday that the Legion  
  
was finally released from the prison zone and returned to the   
  
island, but the joy was short lived as Merin-da grew ill for some  
  
reason. Luger's love for her had been so strong that he made the   
  
ultimate sacrifice-he ordered the Dark Legion to return to the   
  
zone. Unfortunatly, it was for nothing, as Merin-da died from the   
  
illness she had contracted.  
  
  
  
For years, the once-proud leader was in grieving, until  
  
another woman mended his shattered heart; a medic known as   
  
Mari-su. Again he married when his children were sixteen, and   
  
very much against the union; roughly a year later, they had thier  
  
first child together, a daughter-named Julie-su.  
  
  
  
I felt my heart literally skip a few beats. I was..a  
  
relative to Kragok? To Dimitri?? The same men who have tried  
  
to kill and enslave the island time and again?! And Kragok   
  
knew the truth all this time?!?!?  
  
  
  
The man, whose name was Simon, continued his story into  
  
supposedly my 'toddler years' in which I absolutly loved to be   
  
around Kragok and Kommisar, only to be harrassed by them   
  
completely..and then my life changed forever. My mother had been  
  
killed in a tragic accident that I had witnessed, and Luger went  
  
into meltdown. After leaving me in the hands of Mari-su's   
  
childhood friend, Floren-ca, claiming he had no idea how to care  
  
for a child, he mysteriously disappeared, leaving only one person  
  
to take control of the Dark Legion...Kragok. His first official  
  
act was to have a special chip installed in my mind and every other  
  
Legionaire that erased all memories before that.  
  
  
  
Floren-ca was to be the only mother-like figure I'd ever   
  
have, which worked fine until I was nine, where I was apparently  
  
getting too close to the truth. Kragok had yet another mind erase  
  
performed on me, and Simon and Floren-ca fled through a portal to   
  
the island, one Kragok and Kommisar never saw, and lived there ever   
  
since.  
  
  
  
Now my mind was filled with differing thoughts. Luger?   
  
Mari-su? Floren-ca? All these names that were completely new to  
  
me...yet they seemed so familiar. As if they had been hidden in  
  
my concious until they were brought back to the surface abruptly  
  
Simon's story was definitly making sense. Everything fitted, down  
  
to the time of my amnesia, plus the fact that the gruesome twosome  
  
always seemed to be watching me, making sure I didn't get into   
  
something I shouldn't be in that may reveal the secret.  
  
I believed him, but to be related to so many I hated...Dimitri,  
  
Kragok, Kommisar...I was blood with them.  
  
I agreed to go to Simon's home, where I met his wife, the  
  
woman known as Floren-ca, and again I got the feeling of Deja-vu,  
  
she was so familiar, down to her wonderful, comforting smile. She   
  
made me feel more comfortable as we disscussed my past further,   
  
explaining what happened in the space between the two mind erasings.  
  
  
Now I know the truth, but I'm not sure I want to know it now.  
  
For over four-hundred years, Dimitri's--MY family--has been the most  
  
hated and evil family known to the Echinda race. They have all followed  
  
the path of death and destruction that has been the Legion, enshrouded  
  
by darkness; a darkness I have no care to ever be a part of, yet a   
  
piece of me continues to say I have no choice.  
  
  
  
I am Julie-su, trapped in the darkess of evil and war. The  
  
question is, how do I escape the shadows, if it is too tightly   
  
wrapped around me to move, or a hand to help me if I'm...alone?  
  
  
  
(O.o This things kinda dramatic, ne? Well, I hope to have the second   
part to this done soon, but I ain't giving ya any hints!!!) 


	2. Mind Games

Here's part two of the prologue for Julie-su's mini series. Enjoy!!  
  
~Rebecky-mo~  
  
Lengthening shadows part 2: Mind Games  
  
{~CRREEAAKK!!~ The soft, crisp sound stopped the young   
  
echinda dead in her tracks. As she looked around to find the source,  
  
she heard it again, thanks to her cybernetically enhanced dredlocks.  
  
This time, she knew exactly where it was coming from. She looked up  
  
to see the cables hanging by the support beams break free with a  
  
loud *SNAP!!* as the huge piece of metal fell to the ground, too  
  
fast for anyone to escape...}  
  
  
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"   
  
  
The former legionaire sat upright in her bed as she  
  
awoke from the nightmare, her body covered in a cold sweat.  
  
Her surroundings lost to her for a moment, she glanced   
  
around the room in fear, then slowly her breath slowed, and   
  
she buried her face in her hands. *The dream again..only it's   
  
not a dream.* Julie-su rose to her feet, forcing her legs to   
  
regain thier composure. *Why can't I get through the   
  
memory?!?* She looked at the alarm, it's fluorecent numbers   
  
blinking 10:00 pm *I won't go back to sleep tonight.*  
  
  
  
This was how it had been for the past few weeks,   
  
these dreams--no--memories, had been haunting her sleep. A  
  
part of her wanted the dreams to stop, yet another part   
  
wanted them to stay, but at least finish the recollection.  
  
  
  
Her memories were slowly coming back to her, one by one   
  
through her dreams, and her more depressing memories were  
  
the first to return; the first few nights had concerned   
  
her last time seeing her father before he disappeared.   
  
Now, it was her mother's death that played while she slept,  
  
only at that one spot, it would suddenly end, as if her  
  
subconcious didn't want to see it. Julie sighed and looked  
  
at the deep circles under eyes that were forming.   
  
*It's time to see her...*  
  
  
  
Dark clouds hung overhead as Julie-su once again took  
  
on her now attainable goal; to find the truth about her destiny.   
  
Her cycle was broken, so this was the perfect oppertunity to try out  
  
her invention, the Sky Board. She took the small disk from her belt,  
  
  
pressing the button in the center, which unravelled the snowboard   
  
look-alike, and hopped on, taking off into the air.  
  
It was four days ago that she had written in her personal   
  
journal concerning her meeting with Simon and Floren-ca, and after  
  
much thought in the matter, decided who the next person she should   
  
talk to should be: Kommisar. Julie knew there was a great risk in   
  
seeing her half-sister in the Echinda Security Prison, but   
  
considering Kragok was trapped with no way to speak to him, and   
  
seeking Dimitri was plain stupid-he wasn't even around, plus he was  
  
among the Legion- she was really her only choice.  
  
  
  
She reached the doors of the prison late that afternoon.  
  
She quickly returned the board to her belt, and entered the   
  
building, where Constable Remington stood waiting. He was just  
  
about ten years older than herself, 26 at least, and his hat   
  
covered most of the dark black hair on his head, and shadowed the  
  
deep brown fur and blue eyes of his face. "Are you sure you want   
  
to do this, Julie-su? She doesn't seem too fond of you."  
  
  
  
The two echindas walked down the long corridor to the cells,  
  
"Very sure, Constable, and thanks again for arranging this. Never   
  
thought I'd ever come back here willingly again." Remington chuckled  
  
"Well, you have to admit, you deserved it the first time. Remember,   
  
I'll just be outside the cell door; if you.."  
  
  
  
"Um, Constable?" The former legionaire stopped him   
  
mid-sentence, "if you don't mind, I'd rather do this privately.   
  
No offense, but this is...personal." *This again?!* He thought   
  
recalling how the guardian had asked the same thing mere months   
  
ago. His first instinct was a definite 'NO', but he could tell   
  
this meant alot to the young girl, so he agreed. *Besides* he   
  
laughed to himself, *I get the feeling someone else will be   
  
watching anyway....*  
  
  
********  
  
  
"PLEASE, Sojouner?!" Knuckles pleaded with his great   
  
grandfather and former guardian. "I gotta know what goes on   
  
in there!" The ageing echinda turned from the moniters and  
  
glared at him; this stubborn boy had been bothering him   
  
for five minutes about checking on Julie at the prison.   
  
"You know the moniters aren't to be used like that; they're for   
  
surveillance, not spying on girlfriends." "One, she's not EXACTLY  
  
my girlfriend, and two, I'm not spying; she can have a temper,   
  
and I wanna make sure she stays outta trouble in there."   
  
Knux muttered. Sojourner sighed and flipped a few switches  
  
"Fine." he couldn't help smiling though; he knew what the boy  
  
was going through.  
  
"Great! She hasn't gone in yet!" Knux watched as the door  
  
to the cell opened and Julie-su stepped inside, being greeted by  
  
a cold, sarcastic voice...  
  
********  
  
"Well, well, if it isn't the betrayer"   
  
Kommisar was laying on her small cot, glaring at   
  
her sister, giving Julie-su a chill up her spine; the   
  
Dominatrix-like woman had always given her the creeps,  
  
although she wasn't sure why. She had earned her reputation   
  
in the legion and her position in it by going through typical  
  
soldier training and winding up top of the class, and her  
  
ruthlessness was best shown in her cold, crimson eyes that   
  
matched the fur not covered by the black leather outfit and   
  
thigh-high boots. Crimson eyes, as if the blood in her body   
  
had collected thier and the rest of her body was no longer alive.  
  
  
  
Finally, Julie-su regained her voice "I know the truth,  
  
Lein-da. That definitly got the woman's attention, and a sneer   
  
curved her lip, looking as if she were about to jump her at   
  
the sound of her true name, then closed her eyes and smirked again.   
  
"So, you know we're related, hmmm? Is that the only reason you   
  
came to see me, because I really don't-"  
  
  
  
"WHY?!?!?" The tension in Julie's voice reverberated on   
  
the hollow walls, showing the anger and confusion within her mind;  
  
all this only making Kommisar laugh.   
  
  
  
"My, we're testy today!" She got to her feet and looked   
  
directly at her younger half-sibling, barely ten feet between them.   
  
"Honestly, brat, Kragok and me wanted nothing to do with a runt   
  
like you. You had nothing to offer us but annoyance; we didn't   
  
think you had what it takes to be one of us. We only let you live  
  
so you can serve us like you were meant to do..just like your   
  
half-wit mother!!"  
  
  
  
Kommisar's cackle sounded like nails on a chalkboard to   
  
Julie-su. *THAT DID IT!!!* In a split second, she had been  
  
slammed into the wall behind her, Julie-su's hand in her throat   
  
holding her a few inches off the floor, while the other held a fully  
  
powered blaster, aimed for the center of the-crimson witches face.  
  
"Kommisar, you just made a BIG mistake!!" her finger pressing   
  
lightly on the trigger.  
  
  
  
For some reason, this only served to make the witch grin   
  
again, despite she could hardly breathe "You can feel it,   
  
can't you, brat? Go ahead, you know it's want you want; kill me."  
  
Julie-su blinked, she was telling her to pull the trigger and   
  
kill her, along with the dark voice in her mind.  
  
  
  
"You CAN feel it!" Kommisar laughed as she felt the   
  
ground just beneath her, she could breathe better now, so she   
  
could talk. "The feeling of adrenaline, the need to fight, to   
  
go in for the kill!" Julie pressed hand hand deeper into her neck  
  
hearing her wheeze "I guess--we were wrong--brat! You are--one--of  
  
US!!"  
  
  
  
Julie-su body shook, and finally let go of Kommisar,   
  
letting her sink to the ground, gasping for air and clutching her  
  
neck. Her heart was pounding, and the voice inside her had changed  
  
it's mantra.  
  
  
[ONE OF US, ONE OF US, ONE OF US!!!]  
  
  
*STOP!!* Julie's mind was throbbing, but the voices   
  
wouldn't stop, they kept getting louder, until she felt like   
  
screaming aloud, but before that happened, she opened the cell door  
  
and spoke to the woman still glaring at her on the floor, "I'll be   
  
back, and then I better get answers." After she closed the door,   
  
she ran. Fast, hard, past the surprised Constable, until she reached  
  
the outside, where the soft rain had begun. Without stopping, she   
  
kept going, until she was outside the city limits, and still she ran,  
  
her mind screaming along with her burning lungs...  
  
  
  
Kommisar watched the girl leave, and the door close behind   
  
her, leaving her alone again. *You may be back, brat* she smirked   
  
*But I won't be here!!* She pressed a small button on her glove;   
  
it was time to go.  
  
  
********  
  
Meanwhile, in Haven, Sojourner sighed and shook his head   
  
"That didn't go well at all did it Knuckles? Knuckles??" He turned  
  
to see the sliding doors close, a red tail just fitting in between.  
  
  
  
Knux practically flew down the corridors towards the exit.   
  
Something had hit home with Julie she didn't like, she didn't wanna   
  
hear; and if he was right on what it was, he knew where to find her...  
  
  
********  
  
  
#SH-RACKT!!# The head of Dimitri's statue was completely   
  
decimated by the blast of Julie-su's gun. The vioces still speaking   
  
to her [ONE OF US, ONE OF US...] "LEAVE-ME-ALONE!!" She cried,   
  
blasting separate parts of the statue at the old base where she'd   
  
reunited with Simon. #SH-RACKT! SH-RACKT! click click click#   
  
  
  
Realizing she was out of ammo, she threw down the blaster   
  
and collapsed under the charred piece of stone, her hair wet and   
  
flat against her despite the rain had stopped, holding her head  
  
between her arms and knees. God, what was she doing?...  
  
  
"Julie-su?"  
  
  
The voice snapped her out of her thoughts, and she jumped   
  
to her feet, ready for a fight; she didn't need this right n--"Knux?"  
  
The guardian was holding something under his arm, his face visibly   
  
worried. He took a step forward "Hey girl, you alri.."  
  
  
  
"Don't!!" Julie took a step back, and turned away. "Don't   
  
come near me, please!" Now Knuckles was terrifid for her; this   
  
wasn't the girl he knew. He stood his ground, but didn't move back   
  
"Julie-su, Kommisar's wrong about you. You're nothing like her, or  
  
Kragok."  
  
  
  
"You don't get it!" Julie-su spun on her heels to face   
  
him again. "I ENJOYED it! I had the opportunity to kill someone,  
  
I could feel Kommisar's pulse in my hand, and and I liked--no, I   
  
LOVED the feeling! I'm, I'm not like her; I'm even worse." Her   
  
legs felt like jello, and sat down on the statue again, fighting  
  
back tears, just as her conditioning had told her,   
  
*'no emotion', 'no emotion'*...  
  
  
  
Before she could move, Knux slid in behind her, wrapping   
  
them in the blanket he'd carried from Haven. He pulled her close  
  
to him, and it was as if his warmth seeped through the brick wall  
  
inside her, as warm tears fell down her cheeks "I can't believe  
  
I'm doing this.." she croaked, her voice cracking to keep from   
  
sobbing. Knuckles stroked her hair as she kept crying, neither   
  
of them noticing the darkness enveloping them...  
  
  
  
(AN:Geez, this definitly fits the drama section!! Well, One   
more prologue piece to go, then it's time for the main event:  
Julie-su: Guiding Lights!!! I dunno how long before the next part   
though; gotta study for my Driver's License!! C ya! )  
  



	3. A Soul Search Begins...

Me again!! Here's the last installment of the 'Lengthened Shadows'   
series.. up next, Julie-su's first solo story (from what I've seen)  
One question though.. should it be called 'Guiding lights', or   
'Thicker than Blood'? I can't decide, so lemme know.  
  
  
Enjoy, and please review.  
  
  
ALL CHARS BELONG TO (does anyone even read this?!?) SEGA OR ARCHIE   
  
~Rebecky-mo~  
  
Legthened Shadows, part three: Soul Search  
  
  
  
[Two year old Julie-su watched in horror as the giant piece of  
  
medical equipment fell on her mother; she had no time to move, only  
  
time for her mouth to open in a silent scream, before the deafening  
  
crash echoed in the steel room, soon followed by the only witnesses   
  
screams. "Mommmmeeeeeee!!!" The small echinda raced to the site,   
  
trying desperatly to free her mother from the shorted-out debris, tears   
  
running down her soft peach muzzle "Please mom, don't go...!!"]  
  
  
  
[Floren-ca, Mari-su's friend and assistant ran into the room  
  
through the metal doors, as her fears of the crashing noise were   
  
justified "MARI!! Oh, Gods!!!" She quickly grabbed Julie-su and   
  
pulled away the reluctant child away "Julie-su! Don't, you can't help  
  
her now."] Julie-su's body gave in and sobbed uncontrollably as her  
  
other 'mother' picked her up and hugged her, trying to keep herself   
  
calm for the child's sake. Julie looked up at the roof by the beams,   
  
trying to stop crying, as something in the rafters caught her eye...]  
  
  
  
[Suddenly, Julie-su was pulled from Floren-ca's comforting   
  
arms, and strapped to a cold table, brilliant white lights blinding   
  
her. Then the machine shadowed the lights as it descended onto her   
  
skull; "Floren-ca, Simon...DADDDEEEEE!!"]  
  
  
  
Knuckles awoke with a start, almost jumping out of his position  
  
at the strange dream; the only thing preventing him from doing so was a  
  
slightly heavy mass on his chest and shoulder. He realized he wasn't   
  
in a warm bed in his den, but rather covered in a blanket on a cold,  
  
marble statue of his distant uncle, Dimitri, Julie-su asleep on him.  
  
  
  
*How long have we been asleep?* From the moon in the cloudy   
  
sky, it was at least midnight, if not later. Again he looked down   
  
at the sleeping beauty; her cheeks still had the streak marks of   
  
the tears she'd shed. She had cried for what seemed an hour, and he   
  
didn't dare stop her; from what he knew, he had a feeling this was   
  
the first true emotion she'd shown in a very long time.   
  
  
  
He began thinking of the nightmare he just experienced, *Or  
  
was it really mine? Could I have been witnessing Julie's memories?*   
  
As if on cue, Julie-su began to shake, her face growing tense as   
  
her own personal horror movie continued to play in her mind. Slowly,  
  
so as not to wake her, her rubbed her upper arm to relax her, which  
  
occured after a few moments.  
  
  
  
If what little Kommisar said to her upset her this much,  
  
she must have considered the thought of her being evil before; if  
  
only he could make her believe him, it felt like he'd been stabbed  
  
as each tear of sorrow had fallen...  
  
  
  
"My, isn't this cozy." The guardain heard a soft ^Bamf^ noise  
  
as Archimedes the fire ant appeared in a puff of smoke "Not one word,  
  
Archy" Knux sighed, fighting his blush; he'd hoped Archy wouldn't have  
  
come out here to check on them, it was just too damn awkward.  
  
"Actually, I didn't" The tiny ant replied, reading Knux's   
  
thoughts, "We need you; there's been a jailbreak at E.S.T HQ."  
  
  
  
"WHA-?!?" Knux clamped a glove over his mouth to quiet himself  
  
"What? When?!?" he hissed. The ant jumped to his shoulder, "Just about  
  
two hour's ago. It happened too fast for Haven to step in, so all   
  
Legionaire's in the building escaped. The rest of the Chaotix have  
  
already gathered there."   
  
  
  
"All Legionaire's...including Kommisar." Knuckles regained   
  
his usual serious look "Listen, I can't right now; I can't get up   
  
because Julie's still asleep, and.."  
  
  
  
"No, I'm not.." a tired, hoarse voice interrupted him as   
  
Julie-su moved away from his shoulder. One look at where she was   
  
was enough for her to mutter "So much for it being a dream. What's   
  
this about Kommisar?" Archimedes gave her the quick relay, and   
  
without a word, he transported them to the scene of the crime...  
  
********  
  
  
"Man, this place is totally slagged!" Vector yelled as he   
  
took in the scene. A huge hole had been blasted into the section   
  
leading to the cells, bricks and concrete strewn everywhere. The   
  
cell doors were torn off the hinges, and water pipes spewed thier  
  
contents onto the floor.  
  
  
  
Mighty the Armadillo groaned and covered his ears as he   
  
spoke to Espio "How can he be so loud in the middle of the night?"  
  
The violet chameleon shook his head in response, "We should invest in  
  
a volume dial like the one for his walkman, but he's right, this place  
  
has definitly looked better. Knux!!"  
  
  
  
The three unlikely friends turned to see Archy's trademark  
  
puff of smoke, revealing it's passengers "So, what have you heard   
  
so far, guys?" Julie-su asked, surveying the scene with emotionless  
  
eyes. Knux watched her and sighed inwardly; that brick wall inside   
  
her had gone up again, but damage had definitly been done.  
  
  
  
"Nothing yet. We're waiting for the Constable to show up."  
  
Espio explained. As he said this, Remington's lieutentant entered the  
  
room "He won't be coming, Chaotix. He's been taken to the hospital   
  
for slight injuries recieved during the attack."  
  
  
The entire group seemed in shock until Knux finally spoke  
  
"Is it serious?" The older echinda shook his head "Minor bumps and   
  
bruises, but they wanted to be sure; anyways, I suppose you'd like the  
  
info on tonight's break-in?" As he watched the guardian nod, he   
  
continued:   
  
  
  
"Roughly two hours ago, hole was blasted into the south  
  
wall by a small Legionaire ship, that was incredibly silent and   
  
cloaked; we never saw it coming, until they attacked. There were  
  
some serious injures to some prisoners and guards, including the  
  
Constable who was speaking to one of the Legionaire's. In the   
  
abruptness of the attack, we had no time to retaliate, and it seemed  
  
they weren't there to fight; simply to pick up thier men. After that,  
  
The ship reclaoked itself, and disappeared into the air."  
  
  
  
"That's it??" Knuckles raised an eyebrow, "Boom, bust out,  
  
then book it?" The entire crew was stumped, save Julie-su, who took   
  
out her eye visor; this did make sense, ship break-in's only occured  
  
if...  
  
  
  
The lieutenant sighed "For now, yes. Right a the moment,   
  
we're making sure our men are safe, and that no other prisoners   
  
escape. We can't do anything about it until the morning light,  
  
so you five might as well go home; I'll stay here and report if   
  
we need you before then."   
  
  
  
"Hmf! Wake us up just to send us back" Mighty groaned,  
  
exhasted. He hadn't wanted to get up in the first place, but he   
  
thought there was a bigger reason to get up than to hear what   
  
he already knew.   
  
  
  
"Relax, Mighty; " Archy warned "it's been a long night for all  
  
of us. I'll transport you three back to your homes." The Chaotix   
  
circled around the fire ant, then Vector looked over to Knux "Comin',   
  
dude? It's the only way to travel!" Knux smirked and shook his head.  
  
"Nah, I'm gonna go my own way; I need the air." He watched as the   
  
Chaotix disappeared, then walked with Julie-su, who'd stuffed her   
  
visor away, out the doors.  
  
  
  
"You gonna be okay, Julie?" Knux asked. "All this with   
  
Kommisar.." Julie-su gave her best reassuring smile and nodded  
  
"Yeah, just need some rest." He gave her one last unsure look, then  
  
placed his hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry, we'll get her back, then  
  
you can do what you have to." He took off into the night air as Julie  
  
took out her Sky Board and headed for her own apartment.   
  
  
  
She arrived within minutes, and saw a very strange surprise   
  
waiting for her. Attached to her door was a piece of paper, a red rose  
  
imprinted in one of the corners:  
  
  
YOU ARE NOT ALONE. IF YOU WANT TO STOP THE DARKNESS,  
WE ARE WITH YOU, IF YOU FOLLOW US...  
  
  
Julie just stared at the letter for a moment; she had no clue   
  
what the first sentance meant to her, but the second part...*IF YOU   
  
FOLLOW US* She knew what had to be done, and once again, she knew  
  
she had to do this by herself. She opened the door to her apartment,  
  
and began to prepare...  
  
********  
  
"I can't believe we didn't pick up the ship on radar!!"  
  
Spectre growled from beneath his cloak, hiding his white ring  
  
"Thier technology is getting more advanced each time we face them!!"   
  
  
  
"Even if we had, we had no time to intercept them." Locke,   
  
Knuckles' father, replied, doing his best to sound calm, even   
  
though he was as mad as his grandfather. Archimedes once again   
  
returned to Haven "I saw nothing unusual at the E.S.T" he explained,  
  
"but the Chaotix and I will return come morning, and.."  
  
  
  
"Seems one of them won't wait." Sabre mused, looking at one   
  
of the moniters. "Julie-su is making her way to the edge of the   
  
island." That bit of news broke Locke's serenity "WHAT?!? Why is she  
  
still out?" He knew of her trouble with Kommisar due to Sojourner's  
  
report, but this...?  
  
  
  
Archy sighed and spoke "I'll try and figure that out." With a  
  
puff of smoke he disappeared once again, thinking , *Kids thier age   
  
never seem to have curfews anymore...*  
  
********  
  
  
Julie-su stood at the edge of the island, making sure she had  
  
the necessities for her journey; *Food, clothes, ammunition..*   
  
"ARCHY?!?!" The fire ant poofed onto her backpack "Now where do you think   
  
you're going?! We agreed we'd all search the island when morning came,  
  
and now you're.."  
  
  
  
"They're not on the island, Archimedes." Julie replied,   
  
placing her visor back over her eye. "They've left." Her voice was  
  
sure and steady, sunning the ant for a moment "Left? How do you..?"  
  
  
  
She placed the backpack onto her shoulders as Archy hopped   
  
into her open palm. "The Legion could have performed the standard   
  
ground attack on the E.S.T base, but they chose the ship attack due   
  
to the plan. Air assualts are only done to free prisoners for one   
  
reason; they don't intend on staying on-island. I picked up the   
  
ship's energy frequency at the Headquarters, but wasn't sure until  
  
now why they used it."  
  
  
Archimedes crossed all four of his 'arms' and glared "Makes  
  
sense, I must admit; well, we'll wait until morning, then..."   
  
  
"I'm going ALONE, Archy."  
  
  
"And why is that? You'll need the rest of us to tackle them."  
  
  
She sighed "Archy, I gotta do this by myself without outside   
  
interference. This may be the only way for me to decide what role I'm   
  
meant to play in life, and I can't let the Chaotix be in danger   
  
because of me." Julie-su could see the hesitance in the ant's eyes, so  
  
continued "Listen, you're always on Knux's back, telling him his past  
  
connects directly to his future, his destiny--I want that..I need it."  
  
  
  
Archimedes threw up his hands "The boy's right; you ARE   
  
impossible to argue with! Just be careful, alright? I believe the   
  
others would like to have you around a while longer; they've   
  
gotten rather attached." Julie-su smiled, and gave him a peck   
  
on the cheek, "Thank you, Archy." She whispered, placing him   
  
on a boulder. "Tell the guys I'll be back..if I think I can."  
  
  
  
The fire-ant watched as the confused echinda took of into  
  
the night air, disappearing into the dark, "I hope you find what   
  
you seek, young one." he whispered as he himself left in a puff   
  
of smoke. "Because the rest of us can't tell you who you are,   
  
even if we know the truth"....  
  
  
(Whee! Done!! ^^ I so happy! Well, hoped ya liked, and if ya  
didn't read the top, I need help with the title for the solo;)  
  
'Guiding Lights' or 'Stonger Than Blood??' ? Review and lemme know!! 


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